South Africa, through the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (the DTIC) successfully hosted the second Group of Twenty (G20) Trade and Investment Working Group (TIWG) meeting under its G20 presidency in Somerset West, Western Cape, from 6 to 8 May 2025. The meeting was chaired by Ambassador Xolelwa Mlumbi-Peter, Deputy Director-General: Trade Branch at the dtic.
The meeting was attended by senior officials and trade experts of G20 member states, invited guest countries and international organisations, as well as regional economic communities. The Deputy Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition, Zuko Godlimpi, officially opened and welcomed the G20 members and invited guests, while the Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition, Parks Tau, and the Director-General, Simphiwe Hamilton, hosted an official dinner for G20 members and invited guests.
The opening events focused on the importance of coordinated efforts to realise multilateralism and inclusivity in global trade as well as highlighting South Africa’s G20 themes of solidarity, equality and sustainable development, while emphasising the shared goals of sustainable development, prosperity, and human survival.
G20 members reflected on the previous virtual meeting held in March 2025 while engaging in discussions to pave the way for a collective approach in managing the current challenges related to economic global governance and the importance of multilateralism as the only viable option to address global economic and trade challenges. The deliberations broadly echoed the need to counter increasing protectionism, to discourage trade restrictions, to enhance trade liberalisation and to intensify the mutual flow of investments.
The meeting emphasised the importance of cooperation and commitment from members and international organisations to encourage shared global trade prosperity and to strengthen international mechanisms to respond to the ever-increasing challenges that fragment international trade. G20 members raised proposals and suggestions with the intention of assisting the South African presidency to develop text in preparation of the Ministerial declaration.
The meeting also afforded G20 members an opportunity to advance a forward-looking agenda for inclusive and sustainable economic growth and further expanded on the following key priority areas:
- Brainstorming current challenges facing global trade: A forward-looking agenda with a focus on the global commons that fragment and cause trade distortions, inequality, and an undeniable imbalanced multilateral trading system.
- Trade and Inclusive Growth, whereby trade benefits are shared on an equal basis, and advocating for a developmental approach to reduce poverty, create employment and improve the standard of living with a view to develop high-level principles to foster trade and inclusive growth, and work toward a G20 Africa Cooperation Agenda while building on previous presidencies’ initiatives on promoting a G20 partnership with Africa.
- Responsive Trade and Investment Agenda to address global challenges such as climate change, digital inclusion, pandemic preparedness, food security, and supply chain resilience, alongside reforms in the investment treaty regime to support the global commons.
- G20 Framework on Green Industrialisation and Investments with a focus on structural transformation through just energy transition, value addition, and ultimately to “buy into the Grand Bargain” that promotes resilient supply chains.
- World Trade Organisation (WTO) Reform with support for WTO reform through modernisation to ensure effective and efficient operations and to be able to respond to current global challenges while striving for inclusivity and a transparent and balanced dispute settlement system and taking into account a sustainable developmental agenda.
G20 members will engage further on the issues with a view to prepare recommendations for the Trade and Investment Ministers’ meeting scheduled for 10 October 2025.
